An application for a court order to force Williams to answer questions over the murder of his friend and former bodyguard will be heard tomorrow.

It follows an earlier bid to try to break the underworld code of silence, when police sought a similar order to question a witness to the shooting, Geoffrey Graham Reading. The application to question Mr Reading failed on a legal technicality.

Dominic "Mick" Gatto, 48, of East Doncaster, has been charged with Veniamin's murder at a Carlton restaurant last week.

When seeking the order against Mr Reading last week, Purana detective Boris Buick said Mr Reading was not a suspect, but it was unclear what his role was.

Meanwhile, two men named as "persons of interest" by the Purana Taskforce shouted abuse at police yesterday after being sentenced in the County Court to 12 months' jail for firearm offences.

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Hizir Ibery Ferman, of Broadmeadows, and Robert Daniel Musso, of Mill Park, were found carrying firearms after being searched by police in Reservoir on December 19.

Ferman turned to a Purana Taskforce detective as they were led from the court and shouted: "You reckon 12 months is going to stop me, you dog?"

The court heard that Ferman, 22, and Musso, 25, were on parole when they were found carrying the guns. Ferman had a .32 calibre firearm with live ammunition in his clothing, while Musso was carrying a .38 calibre revolver with live ammunition.

During an earlier hearing at Melbourne Magistrates Court, a Purana Taskforce detective said the pair was linked with murdered gangland figures Nik Radev and Mark Mallia.

The detective said Ferman and Musso were associates of men police believe were present when Radev was shot dead in last April.

The two men pleaded guilty to one count each of being a prohibited person in possession of an unregistered firearm. They were each sentenced to 12 months' jail to be served cumulatively with the remainder of previous sentences.